The Fifth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change recognizes indigenous, local, and traditional knowledge systems and practices as a major resource for adapting to climate change (IPCC, 2014). For coastal regions and small islands, however, the contributions of local and indigenous knowledge are largely based on research and literature from the Pacific, with a research gap in other small island regions, including the Caribbean.

Contributing to the mobilization of local and indigenous knowledge in the Caribbean, UNESCO will organize a regional conference on local and indigenous knowledge and climate change.

The conference has been postponed until early December 2017. New dates will be announced soon.

The knowledge of the indigenous Mayangna and Miskito of the Central American tropical rainforest about the local flora and fauna is extensive and in-depth. This book captures in meticulous detail the breadth and depth of indigenous knowledge about the aquatic world including a wide range of information about the 30 fishes and six turtles that frequent Mayangna waterways.

“In the evolution of the Information Society, particular attention must be given to the special situation of Indigenous Peoples, as well as to the preservation of their heritage and their cultural legacy.”